Content
Growing beautiful armeria from seeds is not the most difficult task. But before you start breeding this plant, you need to familiarize yourself with its types and features.
Description and characteristics
Armeria is a perennial plant from the Pig family with a long thin pubescent stem about 30 cm tall. Leaves are narrow, lanceolate, collected in a basal rosette. In June, the plant bears light pink, white or purple small buds in capitate inflorescences up to 3 cm in diameter. By autumn, it bears fruit - oblong single-seed.
The decorative period of Armeria lasts about a month.
The perennial grows all over the world - in North America, Western and Eastern Europe, Mongolia and even in the arctic highlands. In Russia, you can see it in the Far East and in the north-east of Siberia. For life, the plant usually chooses rocky areas, often found on the sea coasts.
Types and varieties
There are several dozen varieties and types of armeria with photos and names. Among them are some of the most famous and demanded in cultural breeding.
Alpine
Alpine armeria (Armeria alpina) is a perennial plant up to 15 cm tall. It is a compact shrub with abundant foliage that persists for the winter. It blooms with light pink buds on long peduncles up to 30 cm.
Alpine armeria blooms in early June
Alba
The Alba cultivar reaches 20 cm in height. At the end of May, it bears bright flowers on long stems. White armeria remains decorative for about a month and a half.
Armeria Alba can bloom again in autumn
Hatch
Armeria Lyuchina (Laucheana) is a plant with lush green leaves and beautiful carmine-pink buds. It rises by an average of 30 cm from the ground surface.
Armeria Lyuchina dissolves at standard dates in early June
Pseudoarmeria
Pseudarmeria (Pseudarmeria) is a beautiful shrub about 40 cm tall with a root rosette of leaves. It blooms with buds of pink and white shades, enters the period of maximum decorativeness from June to July. The leaves at the roots of the plant are partially evergreen.
Pseudo-army can also be found under the name beautiful
Ballerina Red
The popular Armeria variety Ballerina Red is a small shrub about 20 cm tall. From the beginning of summer, it brings spherical buds of bright scarlet color. Armeria pseudoarmeria The Red Ballerina can retain its decorative effect until September.
The Ballerina Red variety can be grown in the Moscow region and in the northern regions.
Primorskaya
Armeria maritima is a low-growing perennial, often found on the sea coasts. It rises in height by an average of 20 cm, has a similar diameter of the basal rosette. From late May to July, marine armeria brings pink buds in capitate inflorescences.
Primorskaya armeria is the most common plant species in culture.
Louisiana
Armeria Louisiana is an ornamental plant about 20 cm tall. Blossoms in early June, gives numerous pink-purple buds. Growing Louisiana Armeria from seed creates a lush and vibrant flower bed in your garden.
Flowers of the Louisiana Terry Armeria
Soddy
Armeria juniper-leaved, or soddy (Armeria Juniperifolia) is a compact perennial no more than 15 cm tall with linear narrow leaves. Brings capitate inflorescences consisting of pink or bright red buds. In the photo of the flowers of perennial armeria, it can be seen that it blooms very abundantly.
Soddy Armeria at the beginning of summer is capable of forming bright, dense tussocks in the garden.
Beachwood
The variety Beechwood is represented by dwarf densely branched plants about 15 cm in height with a basal deciduous rosette. It produces very numerous flowering stems only 5 cm long. The buds of the soddy armeria of this variety are pink, collected in flattened inflorescences.
The diameter of Armeria Beachwood flowers is 1.5 cm
Ordinary
Armeria vulgaris (Armeria vulgaris) is a tall perennial up to 60 cm. The leaves of the plant can stretch up to 12.5 cm in length; during the flowering period, numerous carmine-pink buds appear on the stems. In the garden, perennials are grown unchanged; they are not actively selected.
Common armeria has a pleasant light aroma.
Lovely
Armeria formosa is a small plant with evergreen rosettes of leaves. Very violently dissolves from the beginning of June, brings purple, red or pink buds, depending on the variety. The diameter of the inflorescence is about 5 cm.
The flowering of beautiful armeria can continue until October
Anna Maria
Armeria Anna Maria is a beautiful perennial up to 30 cm tall. Brings large, up to 5 cm, spherical buds of a carmine, white or pink shade. The cultivation of armeria Anna Maria from seeds is practiced - the planting material is supplied as a mixture. The plant remains decorative for 70 days.
The Anna Maria variety blooms in May and again in September.
Velvich
Armeria welwitschii is a tall garden perennial up to 40 cm tall with large basal leaf plates. The diameter of the inflorescences reaches 5 cm, the buds are pink in shade. It is not popular in breeding; in the garden, the variety is grown in an unchanged form. The decorative period of pink armeria lasts from early summer to late autumn.
Armeria Velvicha prefers potassium-rich soils
Armeria broadleaf
Broadleaf Armeria (Armeria latifolia) is a low-growing perennial up to 30 cm in height, during the decorative period - up to 50 cm.It brings numerous bright pink or white buds in dense inflorescences up to 4 cm in diameter. It dissolves in June and July.
Broadleaf armeria is a plant with low frost resistance up to - 15 ° С
Ariadne
Armeria Ariadna (Ariadna) - a plant for decorating rocky gardens and alpine hills. Brings bright red, pink and white buds, often used to fill gaps between tall perennials. Planting and caring for Ariadne's army is rarely difficult. The plant has good frost resistance and is suitable for cultivation in the middle lane.
Ariadne blooms from June to August.
Armeria bulbous
Armeria bulbous (Armeria alliacea) is an evergreen herb up to 50 cm tall with long peduncles. Blossoms from May to July, gives numerous and bright white or pink buds. It tolerates frosts down to -30 ° C. Not represented by decorative varieties.
Bulbous armeria prefers sunny areas and light drained soils
Reproduction of armeria
The garden perennial is propagated by seeds and vegetative methods.The latter are more popular, since they allow you to preserve the varietal qualities of the plant and quickly get the desired result.
Cuttings
You can propagate a perennial by cuttings throughout the growing season. The root outlet of an adult plant is carefully separated from the stem, and then simply transferred to the right place and buried in the ground, lightly sprinkling it.
After that, the perennial is regularly watered and await rooting. Additionally, the stalk can be covered with a glass jar to create a greenhouse effect and promote rapid germination.
It is not necessary to pre-germinate cuttings of armeria in water
Dividing the bush
The method is used for overgrown plant specimens over three years old. In the spring before the beginning of the growing season or in the fall shortly before the cold weather, the bush is removed from the ground and the rhizome is divided into several equal parts. In this case, the stems must be removed. Saplings are added dropwise in new holes at a distance of 30 cm from each other and moisten the soil.
When dividing, the roots of armeria should not be cleared from the ground, so as not to injure once again
Seeds
Perennial seeds can be purchased at a specialized store or independently collected from adult plants on the site. Before planting, the material is stratified in the refrigerator for at least a week, and then sown in containers with nutritious, but light soil and germinated until several true leaves appear. When using the method, it should be borne in mind that seeds collected from ornamental varieties on the site may not retain unique characteristics.
Seeds usually germinate new varieties or low-value species of armeria
Planting and caring for an armeria
Using the seed method, the plant is propagated both at home and immediately in the garden. In both cases, there are several rules to follow.
When to sow seeds for seedlings and outdoors
If the seeds are laid directly in open ground, this should be done in the fall before the onset of cold weather or in early spring, at the beginning of March. In this case, the material will naturally stratify in cold soil.
When growing home seedlings, seeds are pre-laid in the refrigerator for at least a week, and preferably for several months. Planting in boxes is carried out in late February or early March.
Soil preparation and site
In the garden, a well-lit, warm area with moist, slightly acidic soil, sandy or rocky, is chosen for the plant. The selected place is dug up and, if necessary, the quality of the soil is improved by spilling it with a solution of malic or acetic acid. The earth is carefully loosened, fertilized with complex minerals.
When growing home seedlings, you need to prepare wide, but shallow containers or separate small pots. They are filled with loose and light soil; a mixture of garden soil and peat with sand is well suited.
Sowing Armeria seeds for seedlings or in open ground
When planted in the ground, the seeds are embedded in holes several centimeters deep and sprinkled with soil, and then left until spring. It is better to plant a perennial in this way on a temporary site in order to subsequently transfer the strongest seedlings to a permanent place. On top of the bed for the winter, you can cover with fallen leaves to protect the soil from excessive freezing.
For home planting, seeds removed from the refrigerator are soaked in warm water for several hours so that they swell slightly. After that, the material is immersed in the prepared soil mixture by no more than 5 mm, sprayed from a spray bottle and cover the container with film or glass. You need to put the seedlings in a warm place with diffused lighting.
Seedling care and planting in open ground
Home seedlings should give their first shoots in about two weeks. After that, the shelter is removed from the box and moved to a well-lit windowsill.
When two or three true leaves appear on each of the seedlings, the armeria can be dived
With the final establishment of warm weather, you can plant armeria in open ground. Before this, it is recommended to harden the seedlings - for two weeks, the box with seedlings is taken out into the street, first for a couple of hours, and then for the whole day. When planting, the sprouts are embedded in the soil, leaving the root collar above the surface, and a distance of at least 30 cm between individual specimens is maintained. Immediately after transferring to the ground, the perennial is well watered.
Follow-up care
Caring for an armeria when planting in an open field is reduced to simple actions. First of all, the plant needs to be watered from time to time during the period of active growth and in the summer heat. With abundant natural precipitation, perennials do not need additional moisture. After watering, it is recommended to loosen the soil at the roots and remove weeds.
Plant feeding is carried out several times per season, during the active growing season and in autumn. Before flowering, fertilizers with a nitrogen content are required, and at the end of the decorative period - with potassium and phosphorus. By itself, the perennial survives well even on poor soils, however, with a lack of nutrients, buds may not set well.
With the onset of autumn and at the end of the decorative period for armeria, pruning is performed on flower beds. Peduncles and dried leaves are removed so that the plant can direct all its forces to strengthen the underground part before the onset of winter. Approximately once every five years, as the perennial grows, it is recommended to divide and transfer to a new place.
Diseases and pests
The plant has good immunity to fungal diseases. A perennial rarely suffers from ailments, and the greatest danger to it is represented by:
- late blight - the disease provokes the development of root rot and the appearance of spots on the leaves;
Late blight occurs most often when the soil is waterlogged
- fusarium - the leaves of the plant turn yellow and fade, and the stems become weak and lethargic.
Fusarium disease leads to decay of the root collar of the plant and its death
When the first symptoms of diseases appear, treatment should be started immediately. The affected leaves and peduncles are removed, and the perennial is treated with copper sulfate, Bordeaux liquid or Fundazol. Spraying should be carried out according to the instructions, several times per season at intervals of 2-3 weeks in order to reliably eliminate the causative agent of the fungus. If the plant is too badly affected, it is better to dig it up and destroy it before the disease spreads to neighboring plantings.
Of the pests for a flower, only aphids are dangerous. It is necessary to regularly inspect the perennial and, when insects appear, immediately treat the plantings with soapy water. If the infection is too strong, you should use insecticidal agents, for example, Kinmiks or Inta-Vir.
A large colony of aphids can completely destroy the army
When and how to collect seeds
The seeds of the plant are small, so you need to prepare in advance for their collection on the site. Even before the full end of flowering, during the wilting period, the bud must be tied with gauze. In this case, the ripe seeds will not fall on the ground, but into a homemade bag.
After the inflorescence is completely dry, it will need to be cut off. The gauze is untied over a sheet of paper and the seeds are shaken out, then dried in the fresh air and poured into a paper bag.
Preparing for winter
Most species and varieties of plants tolerate cold well and do not need winter shelter. However, there are exceptions to this rule, for example, turfy armeria is sensitive to frost. Therefore, just in case, in late autumn, a perennial site can be thrown with fallen leaves, dry peat or spruce branches to warm the roots. This is especially recommended if the winter is expected to be of little snow.
Armeria in landscape design
In the photo of the armeria in the garden, it can be seen that the decorative perennial is widely used in decorating plots. Most often it is used:
- for planting on flower beds and alpine slides in group compositions;
Low armeria goes well with monochromatic and variegated plants
- for decoration of rocky gardens;
Armeria feels comfortable on sandy and rocky soils
- to decorate garden paths;
Armeria forms a beautiful border along the paths
- for the formation of a flower bedspread on lawns and wastelands.
Undersized Armeria revives empty space during dense planting
Bells, phlox, thyme are good neighbors for a perennial. Armeria is not prone to aggressive growth and does not crowd out other plants.
Conclusion
Growing beautiful armeria from seeds allows you to get a hardy, bright and effective perennial in your area. The culture is represented by dozens of species and varieties, it is easy to propagate and decorates the garden from the beginning to the end of summer.
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